Eric McHugh: Patriots still working toward statistical immortality

Can't say they didn't try. Tom Brady was one touchdown pass away from tying Peyton Manning's single-season NFL record of 49. Randy Moss was one TD catch away from equaling Jerry Rice's 1987 mark of 22. And the Patriots were a mere six points (just a touchdown) away from breaking the 1998 Minnesota Vikings' all-time scoring standard of 556 points.

Eric McHugh

Can't say they didn't try.

Tom Brady was one touchdown pass away from tying Peyton Manning's single-season NFL record of 49. Randy Moss was one TD catch away from equaling Jerry Rice's 1987 mark of 22. And the Patriots were a mere six points (just a touchdown) away from breaking the 1998 Minnesota Vikings' all-time scoring standard of 556 points.

So Brady wound up and chucked it deep twice in the fourth quarter, trying to kill three birds with one stone ... er, bomb.

Didn't happen because Moss was triple-covered on the first attempt and double-covered on the second one. A case of forcing the issue? Or maybe a higher-percentage play than you might think because, hey, look who the intended target was.

"Hell, I'm Randy Moss," the big guy said with a wide grin, breaking up the post-game interview room. "What do you expect?"

Honestly, after last week's dreary offensive showing against the Jets – one TD, that on a 3-yard drive - we kind of expected the Patriots to rewrite the record book yesterday and check all those stats off their to-do list before next Saturday's regular-season finale against the Giants.

Nope.

The Patriots stuffed the Dolphins up their Christmas chimney all right, 28-7, but their pursuit of statistical immortality, like their pursuit of perfection, is ... to be continued.

It was an oddly unfulfilling ending - records-wise - given how hot the Pats were in the first half, when they scored all their points. They reached the end zone on their first, third, fourth and fifth possessions and seemed destined to turn the second half into a coronation.

Instead, the Dolphins - to their credit - dug in their heels (fins?) and blanked them after the break, meaning the Giants could be playing the role of Al Downing to the Pats' Hank Aaron next week. (No Barry Bonds or Mark McGwire references allowed here, thanks.)

"We don't really think about the records while we're out there playing," insisted Jabar Gaffney, whose 48-yard catch-and-run TD in the second quarter lifted Brady into a tie with Dan Marino (48 TDs in 1984) for second place all-time behind Manning, who crafted his masterpiece in 2004.

"We just keep playing football the whole time and that stuff will take care of itself."

Still, Gaffney acknowledged that the Pats would like to see Brady vault ahead of Manning, whose kid brother Eli will be QBing the Giants next week.

"We want to get it for him," Gaffney said. "We'll go out there next week and fight hard, and hopefully it'll happen."

Brady also downplayed the record, which he was on target to shatter when he had 38 TDs through his first 10 games. He has slowed his pace considerably - 10 TDs in his last five outings, although that's still a mighty impressive clip. Brady said the team records - most points (the Vikes are barely hanging on), most TDs (the Pats have 71, one more than the '84 Dolphins) - are "pretty cool ... (but) winning is the most important (thing) and I think that's really what everyone's concerned with."

In his first meeting with the Dolphins this season, Brady had a perfect passer rating of 158.3 and threw six TDs. Had a 79.7 rating this time with three scores - two to Moss (11 yards, 1 yard) and the long one to Gaffney that made it 28-0 with 3:33 left in the first half.

Gaffney's TD went right through the hands of streaking safety Lance Schulters, who seemed to have a sure INT along the left sideline.

"That's the kind of stuff we work on all the time in practice," Gaffney said. "We have to make that catch. If Tom gets it to us we have to pull it down, no matter who's around us. Our hat's off to our receivers coach for putting us through a lot of hand-eye coordination drills and distraction drills."

If that play summed up the do-no-wrong first half, then the Brady-to-Moss misfires symbolized the nothing-went-right final 30 minutes. Brady was 4 of 15 for 52 yards and two INTs in the second half - a ghastly passer rating of 1.9 (down from 144.0 in the first half). He threw his picks in the third quarter - both intended for Moss - and the bombs didn't connect either.

On the first one, into triple coverage, Moss was jostled by Schulters, and everyone wound up sprawled on the turf as the ball fell incomplete. On the second one, cornerback Will Allen got a hand in at the last second to prevent a big play.

Brady has been zeroed in on Moss lately. Last week against the Jets he opted for a jump ball in the end zone to Moss (it was incomplete) instead of throwing to a wide-open Donte Stallworth. As sins go, force-feeding Moss isn't too bad, so maybe you cut him some slack.

"We'll just have to see the film," Brady said. "Maybe there were other guys (open) but sometimes you see him run there and you just want to lay it up there for him ... It works out pretty well when he catches them; when he doesn't, it doesn't look so good.

"(We) just try to make them defend the deep part of the field and open up things underneath. I think about the second half and we just didn't execute really the way I thought we were capable, but they know Randy's going deep and hopefully they continue to defend it. (That) will open up things for everybody else."

Maybe the Giants will overplay Moss next week and Wes Welker will get Brady his record. Maybe Moss will outjump Sam Madison on another 50-50 ball in the end zone and get a piece of Rice's mark.

Either way, the numbers are just gravy. Or so goes the company line.

"I know it's nothing that Tom worries about, nothing that we worry about," Welker said of Brady potentially making history Saturday night. "If it happens along the way, great."

The Patriot Ledger

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